The present invention relates to hunting trophies and display devices, and particularly to a display device for turkey beards.
In the sport of game hunting, the preservation and mounting for display of a part of the animal""s carcass is a time honored tradition. A highly prized trophy in wild turkey hunting is the turkey beard, which, together with the fan of turkey tail feathers and spurs from the turkey""s legs, provide a remembrance of the hunt. The turkey beard is a growth of modified feathers approximately eight to ten inches long on the chest of the male turkey. The length and fullness of the turkey beard are thought to be related to the. turkey""s virility, strength, age, and survival skills in an often hostile environment.
It is well known in the art of taxidermy to preserve and stuff small birds. However, the size of the turkey carcass results in a trophy whose size is too bulky and inconvenient for display and storage by the average hunter. Current methods and devices for displaying trophies from a successful turkey hunt devote scant attention to the turkey""s beard, usually securing the beard to a plaque, mounting the fan of tail feathers, more or less as an afterthought. The present invention solves the problem of an appropriate display device for a turkey beard by providing a casing and ring for the turkey beard, furnishing the turkey beard with a decorative mount which may be attached to a hook in any desired location.
Prior methods of mounting a turkey beard for display are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,064,725, issued Nov. 12, 1991, to T. H. Acker; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,935, issued Aug. 1, 1995, to V. W. Fredeen. The Acker patent describes a plaque on which the tail fan, the legs, and the beard are mounted. After being salted, dried, and cured, the turkey beard is mounted to a recess in the plaque by a compressive fit of the butt, or by a xe2x80x9cspotxe2x80x9d of adhesive. The Fredeen patent describes a mounting block for bird feathers with holes for receiving the feathers. The Fredeen patent mentions mounting the turkey beard to a notch on the underside of the mounting block by adhesive.
Various devices and methods for mounting other animal trophies are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,464,440, issued Aug. 7, 1984, to J. G. Dotzman (mount for horned animal with simulated skull for receiving horns); U.S. Pat. No. 4,717,626, issued Jan. 5, 1988, to G. W. Badger (trophy mount for animal with antlers having improved bridge between the antlers); U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,024, issued Jun. 28, 1988, to J. R. Rinehart (animal foot formed into hook and mounted on plaque to form gun rack); U.S. Pat. No. 5,015,532, issued May 14, 1991, to T. E. Knight (taxidermy mount for animal head using plastic manikin); and U.S. Pat. No. 5,472,765, issued Dec. 5, 1995, to L. E. Green (kit for mounting antlers on a replica of a deer skull using dowels).
The present invention attaches a ring to the turkey beard using a shaft having a pointed tip end with barbs. Devices showing some features in common with or similar to the device of the present invention include: U.S. Des. Pat. No. 31,861, issued Nov. 21, 1899 (split ring on a threaded shaft); U.S. Pat. No. 1,082,516, issued Dec. 30, 1913, to N. S. Griffith (tool for removing seeds from fruit having loop mounted on shaft with pointed tip end having barbs); U.S. Pat. No. 3,283,383, issued Nov. 8, 1966, to R. J. Heath (device for securing ropes to sheets having ring mounted on shaft having a circular or conical knob at the other end); U.S. Pat. No. 3,533,890, issued Oct. 13, 1970, to J. R. Nesbit (hanger for Christmas ornament, being a shank with an eye at one end and pointed conical tip at the other end); U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,081, issued Jul. 31, 1990, to M. S. Ross (packing removal tool comprising hollow shaft with an eye and having spring biased plunger with pointed tip end and pivotally mounted barbs); and French Patent No. 1,158,713, published Jun. 18, 1958 (Christmas ornament hanger having an eye on a shaft pressed into body of the ornament).
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.
The turkey beard display device includes a beard retainer and a casing. The beard retainer is a shaft having a ring or other fitting at one end of the shaft adapted for receiving a hook, and a pointed tip end having a barb or other engaging member at the other end of the shaft. The shaft has a radial flange extending transverse to the longitudinal axis of the shaft between the fitting and the shaft. The casing is the brass or brass plated hull of a shotgun shell, the plastic portion of the cartridge and the shot, powder and primer having been removed. As an alternative, the plastic portion may remain in the cartridge. A method of mounting a turkey beard on the display device includes the steps of removing the beard from the turkey carcass including a fleshy plug, treating the fleshy plug in a preservative, placing the fleshing:plug into the casing, inserting the barbed tip end or other engaging member through the primer pocket hole in the casing and impaling the barb in the fleshy plug, seating the flange in the hole, and drying the beard.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a turkey beard display device having a ring or other fitting for hanging the display device from a hook in any desired location.
It is another object of the invention to provide a turkey beard display device which utilizes a portion of a shotgun shell as part of the display for its ornamental, symbolic, and functional value as a casing for the fleshy plug of the turkey beard.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a turkey beard display device which may display the turkey beard as a trophy independently of a plaque or, alternatively, in combination with a plaque.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a method for mounting a turkey beard as a trophy which does not require the use of adhesives or other chemical bonding agents.
It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof in an apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.
These and other objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.